1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Patent No. 3397741 discloses a conventional image forming apparatus that can be used as a scanner, a printer, a copier, etc., in a state of being connected to a personal computer or the like. This image forming apparatus is equipped with a printer unit for recording and a scanner unit for reading of an image.
Both of the printer unit and the scanner unit should be wide and long enough to deal with a recording sheet or original document of about the A4 size and hence occupy large spaces. Therefore, a measure is taken to minimize the space necessary for installation; more specifically, a two-stage structure is employed in which the printer unit is disposed below and the scanner unit is disposed above the printer unit.